Just a Thought

Monday is blog writing day. It's raining and the house is quiet. Heaven. Scrolling through topics without finding one that 'pops', I venture out between showers to walk the dog in the hope of finding inspiration. Sitting back down at my computer, all I can think about is food. Suddenly, a thought 'clocks' me right between the eyes. 'Write about that!' Yes. The power of thoughts. Pass the chocolate torte!

It's true, we follow the direction of our most dominate thoughts. In this case, my most dominate thought is food because I just exercised and it's nearly lunch time. One swift move over to Big Mama and it's remedied. (Big Mama is still doing a stella job keeping our vegetables crisp and our ice cream rock hard - BTW.)

If, for some reason things haven't worked out the way you expected, that's not to say they won't work out at all. The worst thing you can do is to allow negative thoughts to influence and dictate your decisions. Doubt is the biggest road block on the planet. A few episodes of Survivor and you're bound to see someone sowing little seeds of doubt into another player's mind, in the hope of unsettling them enough to gain the upper hand. I'm serious. Doubt and Fear are the insurgent twins. If you let them have free run of your mind, they'll leave you curled up in the foetal position (metaphorically speaking), firmly convinced you're a failure. Get up! You're not finished yet.

It's not a failure unless you concede defeat.

I once wrote a manuscript for a motivational book. It took an entire year of fitting in writing around raising two young children. It was the biggest project I'd undertaken and completed. It gave me a huge sense of satisfaction in finishing it but that's not where I saw it ending. I sent it away for appraisal and what came back was twelve pages of harsh and mostly unhelpful criticism. I read the scathing comments in three installments through tear-filled eyes, then dumped the whole manuscript in my desk drawer and forced myself to forget about it for two years. It seemed like a complete waste of my time.

We live and learn.

I thought that if I was determined enough it would happen. Nobody wanted that manuscript published more than me. What I didn't understand then, was that good things grow over time. Now, ten years later and ready to re-write the whole manuscript, I have a fresh excitement. It's a new era and I'm so glad I didn't try and force something to happen. That's not to say I stopped writing altogether. Taking the one, solid piece of good advice from the appraiser (minus all the emotion caused by his other comments), I pulled the manuscript out of the drawer in 2003 and selected nine quotes and made them into bookmarks. The light bulb moment that birthed a poem, that sparked the book, I made into fridge magnets.

A delay is okay.

During that development process I learned much about business, about life and about myself. All of that helped get me into a business course for mothers with a business idea, which empowered me to see it really could work. With a new support crew and a whole world of opportunity, new life has been breathed into a ten year old dream. So, where will your thoughts lead you? Is it possible, the best is yet to come? I think so!

copyright 2010 Philippa Vette

Worth the Wait

When the delivery man knocked on my door, my heart leaped. "It's here, it's here!" I hollered, zig zagging through the house. Even a quick status update on Facebook announced to the world something thrilling was about to happen.


Gingerly, the delivery guy and his mate, sweat pulsating from every pore, manoeuvered our beauty up the steps and through the house setting her down to rest next to the pantry. What a sight! All 700 litres of Big Mama side by side refrigerator. I almost had a 'moment' but our bonding was crudely interrupted by a barrage of questions about our old and somewhat dysfunctional and much smaller, refigerator. I glanced over my shoulder to see the 'old girl' being wheeled away and asked myself how I felt about our fridge of fifteen years disappearing out the door and on to another life as a beer fridge. The answer caught me by surprise.


'Don't look back!' I immediately turned back to what was in front of me and a ripple of excitement ricocheted through my body. Big Mama was gorgeous. At over a metre wide, adorned in shiny stainless steel, she was possibly big enough to fit the whole family on a really hot summer's day.

One thing was for sure, no more manual defrost, chipping away ice and letting the kids hurl chunks of it over the balcony, while the dog darted across to each piece to taste-lick it in case it contained anything that resembled food. I'd have to come up with a new pass-time.


With one good decision, a wad of cash and an on-time delivery my life just got a little bit easier. Not only was there room to store all our cold food groceries but I could save money by buying meat in bulk and pre-make entire meals for when I was home late. That sound you hear, is my frustration level plumeting.


Big Mama has taught me that there is no value in clinging onto old things simply because they are familar, whether it be a job, negative relationship or destructive old habits. It's time to turn around and look at what is in front of us, embrace it and move on into something better. No more mourning over the past, it only makes us set up residence back there and cause us to miss the joy of today and the hope and excitement of what tomorrow may bring. And it just goes to show that in this frantic, drive thru-paced life, some things are definitely worth the wait.

copyright 2010 Philippa Vette

Still Dreaming of a White Kitchen

Visiting day had arrived. Pulling into a carpark right outside the Ikea entrance just had to be a good omen. Swinging my handbag without a care in the world, my feet fluttering over the hardwood floors like a dancer floating onto the stage I headed for the kitchen department. I may have pranced. I may have sasheyed. I may have also hummed.

I have patiently waited for a new kitchen. One that would accommodate both my dishes and a small crowd of hungry mouths waiting to be satisfied with succulent morsels of slow roasted chicken bathed in lemon and garlic, vuluptuous spoonfuls of airy chocolate mousse and pillows of buttery berry-filled pastries. Heaven to the tastebuds.

If you remember from 'I'm Dreaming of a White Kitchen', there were three kitchens that set my heart a'fluttering. So after much roving back and forth, a decision was made.

An Unexpected Detour

It may have been all the decisions; rounded bench edges or straight, benchtop colour, cupboard door style, handle style, lighting, sinks, mixers but it all became a soupy blur and I was swiftly escorted to an unexpected utopia also known as the Ikea restaurant.

Love at First Bite

Despite lengthy queues, it didn't seem long before a dinner plate was skidded across the table to me, accompanied by a bottle of juice. There, sitting on a pillow of soft, creamy mashed potato were a dozen sauteed little gems. One bite and I was considering Sweedish citizenship. These little meatballs were so good, I wondered how I never knew about them before now. Forget the kitchen measurements left on the table at home, (nothing more needs to be said about that!)forget stone benchtops and soft-close drawers. Now I had the ultimate excuse to drive half an hour on the freeway, scramble through the winding maze of Ikea and fight off shoppers just to have one more meatball or nine and it would all be completely justifiable and most definitely worth it. This was a whole new European dining experience. Would this nation stop at nothing to create yet another genius offering to the masses?

I may very well be one of the last people on earth to discover Sweedish meatballs (as proven by a poll I ran on Facebook) but I'm not deterred. I'm not thinking of those who shall remain nameless, who gleefully wolfed down plate after plate of Sweedish meatballs AND piles of creamy mashed potato over the years and simply 'forgot' to mention it to me. All is forgiven. Now all I can say, with the kitchen measurements tightly gripped in my hand this time and a coupon for $3.95 meatballs in the other is,"Kids, we're going out to dinner!"

copyright 2010 Philippa Vette

I'm Still Dreaming of a White....Kitchen!

Coming soon... (I promise).

More Boutique Market Stalls

Check out Karen's gorgeous kiddies clothes: www.igrowkids.com.au

The lovely Donna and her amazing windmills. Everyone seems to love them. You can't help but feel happy with one of these. Contact: mistydonna11@hotmail.com

The Day a Dream Became a Reality

After an exhausting day driving like a crazy woman in an actual thunderstorm, I picked up my T-shirts, hurled a bundle of cash to the T-shirt guy and raced off to my other job.

When I finally got home at night, I was so tired I may have been asleep even before I got into bed - impossible to tell but likely. But after laying there for the shortest time, I was suddenly wide awake with every thought systematically hijacked by points on my List of Things Not to Dare Leave Behind, in the morning. Beautiful.

Destination: Boutique Market, Anne Street, Brisbane, Australia

I woke this morning even before the birds, (which in Brisbane is super early), feeling like I'd spent the night being "sucker-punched" on Wipe Out. With the help of every able-bodied person who was awake or semi-awake, the car was soon loaded with every product I had. Breakfast was consumed and in some cases, inhaled as we raced for the door. After fulfilling the obligatory babysitting drop offs, I barrelled down the freeway into the city.

THE DETOUR

With the quirky turn of events I've become accustomed to while developing my range of inspirational products, my greeting cards still needed to be cut to size. I desperately hoped the guillotine guy had got to work early and done mine first. Yahtzee! They were waiting for me and after parting with a little more cash, they were released into my steely grip. No time to look at them. Ann Street here we come.

INTRODUCING THE NEW BABY

As I set up my display I could hardly wait to peel back the newsprint that encased my greeting cards and take a peep. A sharp breath caught in my chest. The first sheet was blank. What? Nooooooo! Not another hurdle to clamber over. I've been tumbling over obstacles and deflecting unforeseen glitches for four months solid and I wasn't even sure if I even wanted to solve one more "issue". Then, the next sheet was a stylish, glossy, printed and embossed greeting card. Classy. I had a private "moment".

I sat each of the four types of cards on display as if I were introducing them to the T-shirts (another new addition only one day old) and to the framed quotes. There. A nice little family.

So there they were; no longer just a dream housed in the gallery of my mind - they were real. If only to prove to myself who had never ventured this far in unfamiliar waters - that dreams really can come true, then I'd have to say the journey thus far has been worth it.

copyright 2010 Philippa Vette

NEWS FLASH

Boutique Market

166 Ann Street, Brisbane, Australia

10am-3pm

All Welcome.

Featuring: Inspirational Writer, Philippa Vette's striking Eye Chart Quotes

including framed quotes, matching t-shirts and gorgeous greeting cards.

Come along to support local women in business

and get your Christmas shopping done all under one roof.

Come and say "hi".